The Snowman
by Woubazoid
Summary: Belle tries to build a snowman, but someone keeps making it difficult. Oneshot.


January 30, 2013

The Snowman

For twenty-eight years, time stood still in Storybrooke, and just as no one aged, the seasons did not change. The natural climate for Maine had always been rather cold, but no one seemed to notice that the weather around them was stagnant. So it came as a surprise when the citizens of Storybrooke awoke one Saturday morning a few weeks after the curse had been broken, to a land covered in snow.

The snow itself was nothing new, but what would be considered just another snowfall for Maine, was the first snowfall anyone in Storybrooke had seen in years. There were mixed reactions to the snow, of course. The children were ecstatic, eager to pull on their warmest clothes so they could run up and down the streets throwing snowballs, building snowmen, and enjoying the snow as only a child can. Others saw the snow as an inconvenience, choosing to stay indoors and wait until the powered nuisance dissipated. Some people believed the snowfall was a sign that order was being restored to Storybrooke. Though it wasn't home, (the Enchanted Forest would always truly be home for most), there was a sense that the snowfall was the heralding of a new age – the age of Snow White and James – but those words were left unspoken. They were not in the Enchanted Forest any longer and the time of kings and queens was past.

But, whatever feelings were brought to life by the falling snow, no one was as glad for it as Belle. Having been locked in a small cell for countless years, every experience both old and new was something Belle relished. She did not have the curse-memories that the others still held, and therefore had almost thirty years of memories to catch up on. Creating new memories had not been a problem, thanks to the friends she had made since her release from the asylum. Ruby had helped her experience iced tea, pancakes, and 80s pop music. Henry had introduced her to her Disney counterpart (and the thought of Rumplestiltskin as a ferocious, furry creature had sent her and Henry into peals of laughter, much to Rumplestiltskin's annoyance.) But, her most cherished memories that she was making in this strange new land were the ones she was making with Rumplestiltskin. She'd experienced her first kiss in the rain with him (something Ruby had gushed over, because apparently that was a "thing"); he'd taken her to the cinema to see her first movie, and he'd been with her when she first tasted pizza. (He'd also taken her to experience her first hamburger, but that experience had been tainted by the presence of Regina and she wanted to forget about it.)

Every day was a new adventure for Belle, and she was taking everything in stride. So when she woke up that Saturday morning to a world of white, she knew what sort of memory she would be adding to her ever-growing collection. She grabbed her cell phone off her night stand and quickly dialed Rumplestiltskin's number. She waited impatiently as the phone rang one, two, three times before Rumple's sleep filled voice answered on the other end, "You know it's six-thirty in the morning, right, sweetheart?"

She smiled. "Yes, I know, but have you seen what it looks like outside?"

There was a slight pause and Belle wondered if he had fallen back asleep. "Unless something catastrophic happened while I was asleep, I assume it looks just as it did yesterday."

At that, Belle rolled her eyes. She moved back towards her window and peeked through the blinds. "Rum," she said, "It's snowing!"

She could hear the muffled sound of him getting out of bed and, with the aid of his cane, walking slowly toward his own window. He made a small "hmm" in acknowledgment and said, "Well. So it is."

"Isn't it beautiful?" She asked, and Rumple couldn't help but chuckle at her enthusiasm.

"One thing that never fails to amaze me is how chipper you are in the morning."

"And it never fails to amaze me that you're always grouchy no matter what time of day it is."

"I do have a reputation to maintain, dearie."

She rolled her eyes and moved to her closet and began to rummage through it. Repositioning her phone between her cheek and shoulder as she pulled out a sweater, jacket, and scarf she asked, "Could you forget about your reputation for a while and play in the snow with me?"

She could hear him moving around on the other end of the phone. "Why don't you play, and I watch?"

"And where is the fun in that?" she asked as she pulled off her pajama pants and began to tug on some wool tights.

"Well, you can play and enjoy the snow, and I can enjoy the lovely view. Everyone wins."

She blushed slightly at that and replied happily, "Deal."

He chuckled at her remark and said, "Why don't I meet you at the library? We can spend some time in the snow, and then get breakfast at Granny's."

"Sounds great, Rum. See you soon?"

"See you soon," he confirmed before disconnecting the call. Belle smiled at the thought of walking with Rumplestiltskin in the snow, tossed her phone on the bed and continued to dress herself in layers.

"I've missed the snow," Belle said as she and Rumple walked hand-in-hand down the street. Despite it being early, just nearing seven o'clock, there were already a number of children – and adults – out enjoying the first snow of their post-curse lives. Belle smiled as she watched Emma and Henry building a snowman in front of the Sherriff's station, and she vaguely wondered if Rumple had ever built a snowman with his son. She pushed that thought aside quickly - today was a day for happy thoughts – and tightened her grip on Rumple's hand.

They ended up in the park. Belle loved coming here and seeing the place covered in white made her smile. She tugged on Rumplestiltskin's hand and he followed her over to an area that was mostly devoid of people. Belle walked over to an empty bench and after wiping away all the snow, sat down and motioned for Rumple to join her. He walked over slowly, the cold bothering his knee more than normal, and sat down beside her. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and she sighed happily as she leaned against him.

They sat in silence for some time before Rumple said, "I thought you wanted to play?"

She smiled and cuddled closer. "Oh, I do. But it's nice to just sit for a while and enjoy the snow with you." She looked up at him, and he responded by placing a kiss on her temple. He removed his arm and gestured out toward the snow. "Go on," he said. "Go have fun. I'll be right here."

She agreed and, after pressing a quick kiss to his cheek, she rose and took off running.

Rumplestiltskin watched her as she played, rolling around in the snow, taking handfuls of it and tossing it up in the air to let it fall back down around her. After a while, she decided to make a snowman, inspired by the one she had seen Emma and Henry constructing earlier. She plopped down on the ground several feet away from Rumplestiltskin and began to roll and pack the snow around her into a large ball. Her concentration on making sure the bottom ball was perfectly round was broken when she was suddenly whacked on the head by a rather large snowball. She turned and looked around quickly, trying to find her attacker. There was no one around, save Rumplestiltskin, and she called over to him, "Did you do that?" she asked.

He looked up from his phone, puzzled, "Do what, sweetheart?"

She blinked in confusion and asked, "The snowball. Did you throw it?"

He shrugged and waved his phone at her. "I've been texting Dove. Perhaps one of the children over there," he said gesturing to a group of children several yards away, "is the culprit."

Belle looked back between the children and Rumple and, deciding it didn't really matter anyway, shrugged and went back to working on her snowman.

Several minutes passed in peaceful silence before, once again, Belle was smacked in the back with another snowball. She whipped around again but just as before, there was no one else around and Rumple was so engrossed in his phone Belle knew he wouldn't have noticed who it was. And so again, she shrugged and went back to working on her snowman.

By the time she was halfway done with her snowman, she'd been pelted with three more snowballs, and while she could appreciate the fact that someone else was clearly enjoying the snow as much as her, she was getting tired of being subjected to their prank. With a plan in mind, she went back to rolling the top ball of her snowman, but she kept herself aware of her surroundings. She looked around every few seconds to see if any of the children across the way were sneaking away from the group toward her, or any other sign of movement. After several minutes and no hint of anything suspicious, Belle wondered if the person had caught on to her and moved on to a less suspecting victim. That thought was interrupted by another snowball being hurled toward her. She saw this one coming, but was not fast enough to dodge its path and after it smacked her right in the face, she stood and shouted, "RUMPLESTILTSKIN!"

He looked up from his phone, feigning innocence, but the smirk on his face gave everything away. She stormed over to him and exclaimed, "It was _you_ this entire time!" She laughed and shook some of the snow from her hair.

He fought back a laugh and looked up at her innocently, "Belle, dearest, I haven't moved from this spot."

Belle looked down at the snow at their feet and sure enough, other than their footprints leading to the bench, and her footprints leading away and toward her snowman, there was no sign the snow had been disturbed. The snow at his feet was still perfect and untouched, proof that he hadn't scooped any up-

Unless…

"Oh, you horrid man!" she proclaimed and whacked him playfully on the shoulder. "You've been using magic to pelt me with snow!"

Rumplestiltskin smiled devilishly and laughed out loud, and Belle couldn't help but join in. She wasn't fond of him using magic, but when he did things like this, she couldn't bring herself to mind. He'd been playing with her, just as she'd wanted. She pulled on his hand to tug him up from the bench and said, "Since you keep distracting me, you can help me finish my snowman."

He agreed and they walked over to the snowman together and regarded her progress. The snowman came to her chest, and she still had the final ball to place on top. Rumple handed her his cane, knelt carefully and lifted the head of the snowman and placed it on the top, making it stand almost as tall as her. Belle smiled widely, and after handing his cane back to him, she reached up and patted away some of the snow, rounding it up more, and used her gloved finger to trace two eyes and a smile. She stood back and regarded her work proudly. "I like him," she decided after a moment. Rumple nodded in silent agreement as he watched Belle circle around the snowman, admiring her work.

"It is a shame, though." She said absently, as she brushed off a little more snow from the snowman's head, before letting her hands fall to its torso. Curious, Rumple took a step closer and asked, "What's a shame?"

"That he won't last very long." she explained as she looked over at Rumple, who placed his hands around the snowman to touch hers.

"Well, the snow can't last forever, dearie," he said plainly.

"Oh, I know that," Belle said dismissively, "I just meant it's a shame that he has to be sacrificed in the name of justice."

"What-" Before Rumple could ask her what she meant, Belle jerked her hands away from Rumple's and shoved as hard as she could, causing the top and part of the middle of the snowman to fall forward, covering Rumplestiltskin in snow. He stepped back in surprise and looked at her, only to see she was running away from him, her laughter ringing in the air.

"See you at Granny's, Rum!" She called out behind her, as she dashed across the park.

Brushing the snow from his head and overcoat, Rumplstiltskin laughed and slowly made his way toward the diner, where they would celebrate her victory over him with coffee and pancakes.  
_  
End _

Author's Notes:  
This fic is dedicated to my best friend and beta, who also gave me my first prompt: "Rumbelle and a snowball".


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